Maple Desserts

Sugar on Snow

"Sugar on Snow" parties have been a traditional spring-time favorite in Vermont for over 200 years. Sugar on Snow is made by pouring heated pure Vermont maple syrup onto packed snow or crushed ice to form a taffy-like candy and is traditionally served with raised doughnuts, sour dill pickles, and coffee. The pickles and coffee serve to counter the intense sweetness of the candy.

To make your own Sugar on Snow: Heat the syrup without stirring to 233 degrees. Pour or drizzle (again without stirring) the syrup immediately over the packed snow or crushed ice to form a thin coating. The taffy is soft, so the easiest way to eat it is to wind it up with a fork and enjoy!

Old-time Maple Gingerbread

Recipe from Nicki Paquette, St. Albans, VT.

1 egg
1 cup sour cream
1 cup dark maple syrup
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder

Mix all ingredients together, and pour into greased bread pan. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour or until toothpick test comes clean. Serve with maple cream or butter.

Maple Bars (Country Journal)

Recipes from Fred and Betty Smith, Mix together: Smith’s Sugar Shack, Westford, VT.

1 c. unsalted butter, softened
1 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. maple syrup
2 large eggs
Add:
1 1/3 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 c. rolled oats (not instant)
1 c. flaked coconut
1 c. finely chopped walnuts

Spread mixture in a greased 9x13" pan. Cook at 350 degrees about 30 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

I have cut back on the amount of butter and found there was no difference.

Maple Syrup Pudding

Recipes from Ginger Isham, Maple Grove Farm, Williston, VT.

Mix together:
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 c. dark brown sugar
1/2 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. melted butter

Place batter in 1-quart casserole. Sprinkle with raisins or chopped nuts. In a saucepan, bring 3/4 c. maple syrup and 1/3 c. water to a boil. Pour this over the batter and bake in 350 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Serve warm with light cream.

Ice Cream with Maple Syrup

Scoop good-quality vanilla ice cream into a bowl and top with pure Vermont maple syrup. Add chopped walnuts if desired.

Greek Yogurt with Maple Syrup

Put ¼ cup 0% fat plan Greek yogurt in a bowl and top with 1 tablespoon of Vermont maple syrup. Only 86 calories!

Maple Fudge

Recipe from Marilyn Maxwell, Island Pond

2 c. Vermont maple syrup
(Grade A medium amber is good for this recipe)
¾ c. 10 % cream
2 tbsp. butter

Grease an 8˝ square pan. In a saucepan, bring above ingredients to a boil. Boil uncovered until a drop in cold water forms a soft ball (236°-238°). Cool to lukewarm without stirring (110°). Beat until creamy and turn into buttered pan. Cut into squares.

Maple Apple Pie

Recipe from Hannah Ivins Narowski
Maplestone Farm, East Cornith, Vt.

Double pie crust
8-14 apples (mixture), depending on size (Recommended: Cortland, Northern Spy, Braeburn,
Macintosh) peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1½ tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. flour
¾ to 1 c. dark amber or Grade B maple syrup

Preheat oven to 425° with the rack in the middle of oven. Roll out bottom pie crust and place in pie dish. Peel, core and slice apples. Place them in a large mixing bowl. Add cinnamon and flour and stir to mix. Arrange ¼ of the apple mix in the pie dish. Drizzle ¼ of the maple syrup over the apples. Repeat this until all the apples are heaped in the dish. Top off with the maple syrup. Place upper crust on top. Pinch the two crusts together. Cut several vent holes in upper crust. Place pie dish on cookie sheet (for spills) and place in oven. Watch for over-browning of crust edges - cover the edges with foil if needed. Bake 50 minutes. Turn oven off and leave pie in oven 45-60 additional minutes. Remove from oven to rack to cool.

Maple Shortbread

Recipe Reprinted with Permission from The Meaning of Pie: Recipes and Ruminations from the Kitchen of Kelly Dean Yandell

To read the article reprinted on the VermontMaple.org website, see our Maple In the Media page.

Preparation:
Butter for pan
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
7 Tablespoons finely ground maple sugar, divided use
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1-½ cups all purpose flour (165 grams)
¼ cup bittersweet chocolate chips (I used Ghiridelli semi-sweet)
2 teaspoons pure maple syrup (Grade B is called for…I used A)

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Butter a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Make sure to get some butter in all the scalloped edges. Using a standing mixer or electric mixer, beat the butter, 6 Tablespoons of the maple sugar, and the salt until it is light and fluffy. If you use the chunky sugar, it will not dissolve completely. I found this to be just fine. But if using fine sugar, continue to beat until it is well incorporated, 3 to 4 minutes at a minimum.

Slow the mixer and add the flour and mix until it is just combined. Remove the dough to the buttered tart pan and spread the dough in pan all the way to the edges. Sprinkle the chips on top and press them lightly into the dough. Brush the 2 (generous) teaspoons of maple syrup onto the dough. Finally sprinkle the top with the remaining maple sugar.

Bake until golden brown and firm, about 55 minutes. Place the pan on a rack to cook for 10 minutes. REMEMBER IT HAS A REMOVABLE BOTTOM. DO NOT PICK IT UP BY THE BOTTOM OR YOU WILL HAVE A FIERY RING OF PAIN DANGLING ON YOUR ELBOW AS YOU TRY TO SET DOWN THE PAN WITHOUT INSTINCTIVELY THROWING IT ON THE FLOOR. After 10 minutes, remove the tart from the pan and carefully slide it off of the metal bottom onto your serving dish. Cool completely and serve.

Maple Nut Cake with Buttercream Frosting

Recipe reprinted from Bakingdom.com with permission

When we lived in Vermont, I had real maple syrup for the very first time. Well, that's not entirely true... I'd had it before but it had been low quality and I was convinced I didn't like it. Then we moved to The Maple Syrup Capital of the World: Vermont.

The whole maple sugar process in Vermont is such a part of life. Even after living there only two years, we knew when it was time for the lines to go up; time for the steam to start pouring from the sugar houses.It was one of my favorite things about Vermont. In fact, we lived right across the street from a big, beautiful farm/bed and breakfast that had it's own sugar house! There was maple syrup, maple sugar, and maple candy everywhere you turned. It was wonderful! I never came across a maple cake, though. I never attempted one either.

I have to admit, at that time my cooking and baking skills were in the toddler stage. Vermont was where I made my first fondant cake, baked my first 100% from scratch cupcakes, and roasted my first whole chicken. I'd been cooking for a few years, but I've come an awfully long way since then. Now, for some reason, I have been dying to try making one. Maybe it's the tropical air making me nostalgic for cooler whether and Autumnal flavors, but I finally couldn't resist any longer!
Boy-oh-boy! Am I ever glad I finally made it, too! It's like all of the best flavors of fluffy pancakes rolled up with all the deliciousness of cake! I know, right?! Yummm!! It was easy to make too! I decided to make the decorations as easy and delicious as the cake, and buttercream all the way...maple buttercream, no less!

**Instructions for converting this to a gluten-free cake are included in the recipe!!!**

Maple Nut Cake with Maple Buttercream Frosting
Makes 3 8-inch layers

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE
3 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup maple sugar (can sub brown sugar)
4 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup milk
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

FOR THE FROSTING
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter softened
1 lb. confectioners' sugar (make sure it's gluten-free, if necessary)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons heavy cream

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper, or grease and flour them.

In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, whisk the syrup and milk together; set aside.

In another large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl as needed, and beat until combined. Stir in the vanilla.

Sprinkle about 1/3 of the flour over the batter and mix until just combined. Add half of the syrup mixture and beat until combined, then scrape the bowl. Add another third of the flour, mixing until just incorporated, then add the remaining syrup mixture and beat until just combined. Finally, add the remaining flour and beat the mixture until thoroughly combined. Scrape the bowl, then divide the mixture evenly into the prepared pans.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a crumb or two clinging to it. Leave the cakes in the pans for about 2 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack.

To make the frosting: Beat the butter on high speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the sugar until combined. Stir in the vanilla, sugar, and syrup. Add the heavy cream and whisk on high for 4 minutes.

GLUTEN-FREE
Follow all of the instructions above, using all of the same ingredients except:

Replace the cake flour with a mixture of 2 cups brown rice flour, 2/3 cup potato starch, and 1/3 cup tapioca flour.
Omit the baking soda and use 1 teaspoon xanthan gum instead.

Recipe by Sugarbear